November 9, 1997 Conclusion

“It ain’t personal. It’s BUSINESS.”

In Fall 1996, the first major wrestling story on the Internet was Bret Hart signing a 20-year deal to stay in the WWF. In 1997, the biggest story was his WWF departure.

Much like NFL player Colin Kaepernick would do in 2016, Bret Hart would turn his professional struggles into a personal crusade to rally support for himself.

And much like the NFL’s stance against Kaepernick, Vince McMahon decided that ridding himself of his top star was worth the short-term loss and ire.

“Life’s not fair”: In an ideal world, Bret would have ended his WWF tenure with a successful title defense, followed by a farewell speech as he handed over the belt.

That’s exactly how Bret planned it. But Vince McMahon, Bret’s employer, decided to get HIS belt off Bret HIS way.

And on November 9, 1997, when Shawn got Bret in his own trademark Sharpshooter leglock, Vince told the timekeeper and match referee to officially end the match…

…and for all intent and purposes, Bret Hart’s career.

“Give it (at least) a week. THERE ARE AT LEAST TWO SIDES TO EVERY STORY!”: The reason why Vince McMahon ultimately won out of the Montreal Screw Job is simple.

Albeit reluctantly, he owned up to what he did, and was willing to roll with whatever punches came with it.

And he did so literally, as the real black eye he wore on the infamous November 17 Raw interview (a parting gift from Bret) showed.

Shawn Michaels retired after losing the belt to Steve Austin at WrestleMania XIV. Injuries and guilt over Montreal broke him.

But before he returned to action in 2002, he came clean about colluding with Vince. And fans pretty much forgave him.

He retired permanently in 2010, recognized as the greatest in-ring performer in wrestling history.

Bret Hart, as the Hit Man, the second-generation ring general who overcame a lack of charisma a size to succeed, was destined to be a WWF Champion. And he is the epitome of a World Champion.

But when Bret strayed from the character he made famous, and embraced the role of victim (which he certainly was), it hurt him.

Only after he shed the status of the guy Vince screwed over (and the impetus of wrestling’s greatest villain, “Mr. McMahon”) were his achievements in wrestling finally recognized.

The insanely popular McMahon vs. Austin story line, Bret’s personal and professional hardships, and even the demise of WCW, can all be traced back to a single match.

The Montreal Screw Job is a reminder that even the most mundane of events can change everything and teach a lot.

The five bold statements are the basic rules I’ve made for this blog and anything that happens around me, except in emergencies. And contrary to popular belief, evrything is not a damned emergency.

November 9, 1997 was a night those wrestling fans who saw it will never forget. 19 years later, another far more significant event occurred.

Apparently, at the stroke of midnight, the world came to an end…

This blog was originally supposed to be all about the parallels between life and professional wrestling. It was also going to be about the current WWE product, and some of my favorite matches.

For the most part, rklopolis has been just that. But pretty much everything in not only professional wrestling, but even in my life will always at some point come back to one date…

November 9, 1997.

That was the night my all-time favorite wrestler, Bret “The Hit Man” Hart, lost the WWF Championship to “The Heartbreak Kid” Shawn Michaels.

What should have been just another pay-per-view main event and title change would inadvertently alter the entire wrestling industry.

And on a personal level, it instilled in me five hard truths about wrestling, business, and even life, that I’ve remembered 22 years later.

“Of whom much is given…”:In September 1996, while Bret Hart was on hiatus from the WWF, WCW offered Bret FOUR TIMES what he made at his 1994 WWF peak. But he was bound to lose his marquee status in the rival company.

Bret decided to stay with the WWF, but used the WCW offer as leverage for a raise. In October 1996, WWF owner Vince McMahon doubled his peak pay for three years…part of an unprecedented 20-year deal.

But for they of whom much is given, much is expected. Nobody just gives you a raise. An employer is bound, if not obligated, to justify the increased investment.

If a person fails to meet expectations, an employer can either ask to restructure a contract, or break the contract outright. Vince expected Bret’s return and to bring the WWF ratings, fans, and money on par with WCW.

None of that happened. As a result, Vince wanted to restructure Bret’s contract for less money. Bret refused a pay cut.

“Everything is not about YOU!“: “Stone Cold” Steve Austin, even while he was unable to wrestle due to severe neck injuries, was far more popular than either Shawn Michaels or Bret Hart. He would obviously win the belt… but from who?

After Austin and Bret’s classic match at WrestleMania 13, Bret seemed like the perfect opponent for the ascendant Austin. But Bret simply wasn’t hot enough of a villain by Fall 1997. Shawn, however, was.

And what could generate more outrage and desire to see a bad guy beat more than defeating a Canadian legend in his native country?

To Bret, it was about not losing face in a scripted wrestling match to a real-life opponent in his homeland. To Vince McMahon, it was something else entirely. It was about generating the biggest possible scenario for a new flag bearer… since the last two faltered.

In the conclusion: It ain’t personal… Give it a week… and the most important lesson of all I got out of wrestling’s most infamous incident…

Volume Four, Chapter Two: Why the Sudden Change?

 I’ve quit smoking. It took a decade to finally decide to quit for good. Not cut back. Not “social smoking”. Just DONE. I can think of a hundred different things I can be doing besides spending a grand a year on a coping mechanism that goes- literally- up in smoke.

In order to quit, you have to be prepared for setbacks, physical changes, and having to change personal habits, and possibly even acquaintances. This will be harder to deal with than the meth addiction.

Changing habits and acquaintances is never an easy thing, but in this case it’s worth it. Cutting back on eating is a no-brainer, now that I realize how much I’m actually capable of putting away. That brings me to the final two sentences of Volume Three.

Simply put, around this time last year, a lot was going on that I never saw coming. I got the chance to meet my half-sister, and to attend my 20th anniversary high school reunion. 2013 ended with a furor over, of all things, the ethnicity of Santa Claus and some Church of Christ duck caller. Damn.

That paved the way to start getting away from social media. It’s become the haven for those in constant need of f*cking hugs. People like that, even if they’re not in the room with you, can suck the air right out of it.

We all know my three main targets since Spring 2013. I’ve pointed out example after example that those three hate each other over similarities, not differences. My big mistake was naming them, highlighting them, and actually giving them a uniqueness they didn’t really deserve. Thus “Ghetto Tendencies”.

Volume Four will not target any particular group; again, that would give them credence. Instead, I’ll just rip into the types of people that we all know, and relate them to the archetypes found in the world of professional wrestling. If your feelings get hurt… well, you know who I’m talking about then, even if I don’t.

The original title of this blog was “Wrestling with Reality”. Current events seem to come fast and loose, so I never got to get into one of my favorite pastimes the way I wanted to. “Montreal” was actually one of the very first blogs I did on WordPress, but never published it until recently.

Montreal was perhaps the root of my “Devil’s Advocate” tendencies to question things, even if the answers make me very uneasy. And that’s just one incident in wrestling I can relate to.

In addition, with 40 coming up, and me not expecting to see it until recently, I think a look back, and ahead would help. A lot of things shape us as people, and I’d love to let you know what some of those things are. And they’ll probably be set to music…

In closing, I’d like to thank all of you who continue to read this blog. Nobody made you do it, but I’m all too glad you did. Any comments, questions, you name it, post them, I won’t remove them. There may be less blogs as well, but it doesn’t mean I’m done. Not by a long shot…

Volume Four, Chapter One: Montreal

 

The key to wrestling’s longevity is that it combines numerous facets of all popular entertainment. The promos resemble TBN sermons. It has the glitz and glamor of a pop concert. It has some sex appeal for everybody. And pantomime as it is, it has the contact of sports. The most important part of wrestling, and all serial programs, is the predetermined story line. It’s the most socially adapted aspect of professional wrestling.

The civil unrest in America is due to everybody not keeping to the story line. People really do believe that others should act solely in accordance to what will please them. When people don’t comply, social media explodes. But story lines can only work if every single person involved “does their part”. With 300M people in the U.S., and an equal amount of possible conclusions, that “part” will never be officially defined.

Story lines only work in fiction, and sometimes not even then. I remember the most infamous meltdown in professional wrestling history. Ironically, it came from my all-time favorite wrestler. From Bret The Hit Man Hart, I learned to imitate his ring entrance and walk again. I learned how to celebrate a win, and survive a loss. Yet it was the one time he didn’t rebound from a loss that always stands out in my mind.

On November 9, 1997, the World Wrestling Federation held its annual Survivor Series pay-per-view. The show aired from Montreal’s Molson Centre. Unbeknownst to fans, the main event had no official finish until the show even started. The end of the match began a decade of turmoil.

WWF Chairman Vince McMahon wanted Bret to lose the WWF Championship belt to The Heartbreak Kid Shawn Michaels. The title change would segue into the new, adult-oriented direction Vince wanted the WWF to go. In protest, Bret refused to lose to Shawn. Both agreed that Bret should leave the WWF, and he signed onto Ted Turner’s World Championship Wrestling.

Bret’s publicized imminent departure made losing to Shawn a foregone conclusion to fans. Citing a creative control clause in his contract, and his iconic status in his native Canada, Bret still refused to lose. Two hours before the actual match, Vince told Bret he could go to a draw with Shawn, and forfeit the belt in a farewell speech later. Bret Hart just knew he had forced his employer, and by extrapolation, Shawn Michaels, to give him the sendoff he wanted.

Vince soon admitted he had already planned the night before the match to ensure that Bret lost the belt. He and Shawn told the match’s referee, Earl Hebner, the plan right as the match began. Bret wound up losing when Shawn got him in his own Sharpshooter leg lock, and Hebner (and Vince at ringside and off-camera) called for the bell. At first, people sympathized with Bret. Most people can relate to being humiliated on the job.

As the details of what led up to the now-infamous Montreal Screw Job emerged, public opinion changed. Hulk Hogan lost the WWF Title to Yokozuna before he went to WCW. In addition, it was the fans that showed, through the Nielsen ratings, that they enjoyed the new direction. He had been a moralistic hero at a time when fans wanted to cheer unrepentant guys like the cussing Stone Cold Steve Austin.

Shawn Michaels went on to lose the WWF Title to Austin at WrestleMania XIV on March 29, 1998. He retired from wrestling right after the match. Vince McMahon took the real-life hatred fans and even WWF wrestlers felt for him and created a new antagonist for Austin: Vince himself. Their outrageous on-screen feud would lead the WWF to Wall Street and eventually to Vince buying WCW for a mere $3M in 2001.

Bret Hart was already retired when Vince bought the company. Between horrible creative decisions on the part of WCW, the accidental death of his brother Owen at a WWF pay-per-view, and the success of the Vince/Austin story line based on Montreal, he, perhaps rightfully, became very bitter. In 2002, the same year Shawn returned to the now WWE, Bret suffered a stroke. Only when Vince called him in the hospital did the healing process begin.

In 2010, Shawn and Bret finally made peace. At WrestleMania XXVI, Bret beat Vince in one match, and Shawn retired in another. Shawn wanted to go out with a loss to the Undertaker, and did. At last, it seemed to be all over.

Bret Hart’s Hit Man persona was built around rising up from the pain of defeat over and again. To build such a legend, Bret had to lose. Yet the one time he confused fact with fiction, all hell broke loose. The entire wrestling industry changed when a departing wrestler thought others should follow his script. Reality, as usual, threw a wrench in things. And it took years to make peace with it.

Story lines only work in fiction, and sometimes not even then.